All this stuff about setting an example for their children, same stuff we heard from the cousins I think, please shut up about it. You are on an entertainment show which is supposed to reflect what you think and feel and it isn't about who wants to appear the nicest. Forget about projecting an image, just be yourselves.

And finally they speak out about Vanessa. Why couldn't they have done this on the show? Oh because they just wanted to get along with everyone, in other words appear as the good guys who love everybody. Well I suppose they never had a chance of winning (physically they couldn't compete) so being the 'nice guys' was their role (could even get them on All Stars). Even now they are trying to be nice about Art and JJ.

Or maybe their children mean all the world to them and being proud of them is being theirselves. And maybe they know that the race can bring out the worst of people and think Art & JJ are still good guys. And perhaps being the nice guys who try to get along with everyone isn't a shtick and they really are nice guys who try to get along with everyone.

Nobody gets along with everyone all the time, and I'm sure on that basis other people on the race are good guys too just that they don't keep their heads down and ignore things which they should confront while on the race. They represent themselves and not their children or anyone else on the race, and I say that for all the others as well. And how come in one of these interviews they say Art and JJ are really ok, and yet in another they are willing to bring up the intimidation aspect?

They are the easy option for those who want to think there was only one nice team towards the end because that pretty much was the role they ended up having. And looking back on it that's what they were telling us through the race, that they were great because they loved everyone and were the good guys. Actually this team were one of my favourites in a way, but I don't think they are nearly as perfect as they are made out to be. I found them funny at times when they toned down the God stuff and weren't acting hyper country hillbillys too much. They would likely be in my top 5 of the season still.

« Last Edit: May 01, 2012, 10:16:08 AM by starrynight »

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Best buddies Mark Jackson and William "Bopper" Minton made up one of "The Amazing Race"'s most engaging teams in memory. They were funny, kind, devoted to each other, and resolute even in the face of the most challenging Bollywood dance. Despite powering through this week's tasks, the pair couldn't make up time lost during the previous episode -- and exited the race in fifth place. We spoke to the team -- a shoo-in for an All-Stars edition if ever there was one -- about going back to Kentucky, battling unemployment, and whether Art and J.J. will make good on that Pitstop promise to share their winnings.

MSN TV: What's it been like, coming home to this reception?

Bopper: It's meant the world to us. It's been absolutely overwhelming. Our county is so proud of us. We can't tell you how much we appreciate it.

I found it really affecting, Bopper, when you said that being on the race had opened up your eyes to the world around you.

Bopper: The place where we live is one of the poorest counties in the nation. We're just poor, simple folk. But I got to see first-hand what true poverty really is, and it made me appreciate everything I do have. We were just going down the road in India, and we walked past this man who had to walk on his knees. His feet were curled up behind his back, and this man was still working. His knees looked like elephants' feet. For us Americans, we're kind of spoiled here. He was severely disabled, and he was still working. I cried when I saw that, that was so touching.

I know you first applied for season 12, but were just cast this season. Do you have any idea why you made the cut this time around?

Bopper: I have no idea. I was just sitting here with my daughter, feeding her turtle, and there was a message from the race telling me to call them back. I called Mark, and he scurried over here, and we called them.

You guys talked candidly about living in poverty on the show.

Mark: We speak the truth. We don't bite our tongues. I lost my job when I got back. We did see poverty all over the world. The only difference between them and us is we live in the USA, and it shouldn't be like that here.

Did you get a big welcome-home party when you got back to Clay County?

Bopper: Nothing yet. We've just been going around to the schools, thanking the kids for their support. We talk about bullying with them. We just want everybody to know that our kids are the future no matter what. We have a terrible drug problem here. If you're 25, and you're doing drugs, you're an adult. But we've got to start with the kids. Me and Mark were saying that what we'd like to do is see if CBS can help us with the trip we won [for winning a leg]. We'd like to auction that trip off, to help some needy children here in Manchester [Ky.]. Me and Mark would take that trip, and it'd be over in five days.

Mark: Me and Bopper have been around each other enough. It's not fair for Bopper to go with his wife, or Mark to go with his girlfriend. Why not get rid of that trip?

Bopper: These kids really need shoes and shirts. They should go to school feeling proud, like other kids aren't going to make fun of them this year. We'd give 100 percent of the money to those kids.

J.J. and Art said they'd give part of their winnings to a fund for your daughter's health problems, Bopper. Did that actually happen?

Bopper: I'm not going to hold them to that, but they insist that when payday comes, they're definitely going to give my child a third of their winnings.

Mark, you said you lost your job when you returned from the race. How are you doing now?

Mark: It's a struggle. It was a shock. I never thought it would happen. I lost my job. I didn't lose all my bills.

Bopper: The job opportunities here are slim to none. You either have the coal mine or McDonald's. That's why we put our heart and soul into the race. CBS gave us the opportunity of a lifetime

Mark: We enjoyed it. We weren't running a hectic, scatterbrained race. We could never afford to do something like that, no matter how long we saved up.

When will we see you guys in All-Stars?

Mark: I'll tell you what, if they call us right now, and they're on call waiting, I'd hang up on you right now.

They might have been saved by two non-elimination legs, but Bopper Minton and Mark Jackson's luck came to an end on this week's episode of The Amazing Race and they were sent home. That's right - no more Team Kentucky or Mark's car sickness!

Digital Spy spoke with the duo after their exit, so read on to find out whether Bopper regrets shaving his head, why they could have won the show if it wasn't for illness and injury, and who they want to win now...

I was so sorry to see you go! But obviously you started the leg so far behind - did you think you could make up the time or did you know you'd be going?Mark: "We gave everything. Listen, we didn't know if we were going to make up the time or not but we gave everything we had to try to make up the time. My buddy was bald-headed, I was already bald-headed! We just wanted to do anything we could to stay in the Race because we had a lot riding on it, but once we'd seen that we didn't - I mean, there's nothing in this world that we can do to change it so there ain't no use being sad. That's what I tell my kids when I coach basketball - you give everything you've got, 110%, and you can live with the outcome. I mean, no matter win, lose or draw, you can live with the outcome, and that's what we did. We gave everything we had, everything that was in our power to stay in the Race and it didn't happen, so we can live with that."Bopper: "We knew when we started the leg that morning we were three hours behind, and we knew we were going to have to do everything possible to try to catch up some time, and we did. We rode as hard as we could and when it came to the Fast Forward, we didn't hesitate. Shaving my head, if that gave me just half a chance at staying in that Race to win half a million dollars to better the life of my family and for us to be able to relocate to a healthier environment, you know, listen - I would cut my leg off for them. I'm glad they didn't ask for my leg! But I would have given my leg - the hair was no problem."

Do you have any regrets about shaving your hair since you were still eliminated?Bopper: "Absolutely not. You know, I would do it again in a minute."Mark: "I have one regret that he shaved his head - he looked absolutely terrible!"Bopper: "It's good now, though!"

Have you kept it shaved?Mark: "He grew it back! I thought he wore a wig a couple of times!"Bopper: "I got home, the first thing I done was got me some Miracle Grow and started rubbing it in my head and now I've got a head full of hair again! I'm joking with you about the Miracle Grow but listen honey, I've got so much hair I can have one shave - it doesn't matter!"

Do you know how close you were to Art and JJ at the end? Did you almost catch them up?Bopper: "Well, you know, we definitely made up some time. But as the show was ending last night, I was curious about that myself. So I was watching the shadows and stuff at the final mat. When me and Mark finally made it to the mat there was no shadow, so I don't think we - we might have gained maybe an hour or something back on them, but I don't think we gained enough to stay in the Race. All I know is we gave everything we had - including my hair!"Mark: "There could have been clouds blocking the sun - that's why there might not have been no shade."Bopper: "That's true, I was just going by looking at the shadow of the trees on the mat and stuff and how far or close we was behind. So all I know is when me and Mark got to the mat, there weren't no shadow!"

On the previous leg, you came so close to quitting - what made you decide to carry on?Mark: "It wasn't like we was quitting. When your friend's like that... listen, money can't buy you a life. What good is that money if you're dead or what good is that money if you can't use it? If you see your friend is in harm's way you don't want them doing whatever it is. If you do want them to keep doing it and take the chance on it, they're not your friend. He knows that I've got three kids - just like when he hurt his leg, I didn't want him to go any further because it's just crazy. I mean, we'd love to have the money and everything but money can't buy you friendship and money can't buy you happiness. It wasn't like we was quitting, it was just that I was unable to continue. And as I got water and cooled off and did all that, I was able to continue just like you said. But it was for our kids now."Bopper: "Mark got so hot - I was really concerned about him and I knew he was giving everything he had for his family and me and it was just so hard for me to sit and watch him. He was literally taking the heatstroke and I knew it. And I told Mark, 'Mark, you have given everything you got, man - listen, I would rather you walk back home with me instead of me taking you home in a body bag'. I said, 'Let's take the penalty'. We were far from wanting to quit the Race. I was just wanting him to give up on that challenge and let's just take a penalty, because I was really concerned about my friend's health and I could not stand there in good conscience and watch Mark take a heatstroke when I could talk him out of doing that. Mark was more important to me than that money because money can't replace Mark. So we want the world to know we was by far not quitting, but I had to look out for the safety of my friend's health. Mark even asked me when I finally talked him into, 'Man, just take the penalty', he looked at me and said, 'Are you sure about this?' and I said, 'Absolutely positive, brother - I love you that much'. So that's what that was about. We've never quit anything in our lives and we'll never quit anything in our life but when it comes to the health and the safety of your friend, you need to step back and take a look at the situation and look out for what's best, and that's a human life."

You had some problems in the Race - Bopper, you hurt your knee...Bopper: "I cracked my femur."

Yeah! And Mark, you had the heatstroke. Did you ever expect all those problems?Mark: "No! No, I'm going to tell you something. This is just a disaster. If we hadn't had the heatstroke and he hadn't hurt his knee we would have won that Race. There's not a doubt in my mind. The only reason we didn't come in first more times is because we'd be riding down the road and we'd looked at each other - 'Where are we going?' 'I don't know! I guess we should pull over and wait on somebody'."Bopper: "That was pretty funny. When we finished putting the solar kitchen together in Argentina, me and Mark were the first ones to leave there. This was kind of funny - me and Mark looked at the clue and we said, 'Where are we going to?' Mark said, 'I don't know!' I said, 'I'll tell you what to do - just slow up, let's slow down, enjoy this beautiful scenery, let one of the teams pass us and we'll follow them to the bus stop!' So that's how that worked out."Mark: "We did that a few times. We was worried about the big prize - the big prize is what we was worried about, and we had everyone believing we were just two dumb country boys. And we loved them and they saw how friendly we were. That's just the way we are, that's what we told them. We helped everybody - we would rather give than receive and we would help everybody with tasks. That's why they would get mad at us - some of the teams were saying, 'Why are you telling them this?' It ain't no big deal as long as we just get through the Race, everything will be fine. Everybody made it such a big deal. But me and Bopper, we're two country boys who've never had the opportunity to do nothing, so we got on it and we enjoyed every bit of the Race. Every bit of it."

Bopper: "When Art and JJ were speaking to us about the U-Turn - the only way we would have U-Turned any team on there, including them, the only way we would use the U-Turn is if we had to to stay in that game."Mark: "We could have U-Turned Dave and Rachel and crawled to the first place line!"Bopper: "But we didn't play the game that way. We agreed with every team there, 'Look, y'all have helped us, we've helped you, but when it gets to the final leg if we're lucky enough to make it to the final three, we all agree that it's dog eat dog. We're here to win a million dollars but let's do it respectful and let's be loyal to one another to that last leg. And if we get to that last leg, all bets are off - we have to do what we have to do'. That's the agreement we had with everybody there."Mark: "We was the only ones that was loyal all the way through."Bopper: "True."Mark: "A lot of people weren't loyal to us."Bopper: "Jamie and Nary was loyal to us the whole time."Mark: "The whole time. The rest of them were looking out for themselves the whole time and we didn't care about that. That's how people is. That's the difference between people from where we're from and people from the big cities. We care about people - people from the big cities care about themselves."Bopper: "Listen - our word and honor is all that we got."

So who did you want to win when you left the show?Mark: "We was torn. Bopper, you answer that!"Bopper: "Listen, we love all the teams there. We loved Brendon and Rachel - we didn't have no conflict with any of them. But just to watch Dave represent himself and the way he represents our military, you know, I hope Dave and Rachel win because like I said, he ran the Race hard. What else could you expect of a man that's a Blackhawk pilot and representing our military? And his wife is made of stone!"Mark: "I wanna tell you something else, too - out of the four teams that's left there's two teams - Brendon and Rachel and Dave and Rachel. It wouldn't bother me to see either one of them win, but I'd like to see Dave and Rachel because towards the end they really got close to us and they didn't try to stab us in the back, they didn't try to do nothing wrong to us. Neither did Brendon and Rachel."Bopper: "If any one of those two teams win, we're happy with it."Mark: "We're happy with it, exactly."

A lot of people would love to see you on the show again - would you return to The Amazing Race if you could?Bopper: "In half a second."Mark: "If it took that long!"Bopper: "Right. Absolutely we would."Mark: "If there was ever the opportunity then we would love to do anything CBS wants us to. CBS has made two country boys happier than a lark!"

Bopper and Mark overwhelmed by outpouring of support since ‘The Amazing Race’

by: Sheri BlockDate: 5/1/2012 5:04:00 PM

Despite Mark suffering from heat stroke and he and his partner Bopper being more than three and a half hours behind all the other teams, the two friends from Kentucky gave everything they had to stay in “The Amazing Race” – something that endeared them even more to their many fans.

The morning after their elimination episode aired, Mark had 750 comments on his Facebook page and 250 friend requests, and Bopper says the people in their hometown of Clay County have been ecstatic.

“(Everyone) in the state of Kentucky is so proud of us. The feedback I’ve got from reading the blogs and stuff, the world, their hearts went out to me and Mark,” Bopper tells CTV.ca over the phone.

“You have little children running up to you like you’re some big movie star or something and saying, ‘I’m your biggest fan’ . . . when you get to see a child’s eyes light up, when they look at you, you can’t put money on something like that.”

The team ran into trouble on the previous leg in India when Mark was faced with learning a Bollywood dance as part of a Roadblock challenge.

Already feeling ill when they arrived at the challenge, learning the difficult steps in the blazing sun was almost too much for him to bear.

“It was as difficult as it looked. It was just unbelievable how hard it was,” says Mark, a former state inspector.

Noticing that his partner was struggling, Bopper, a motorcycle mechanic, tried to convince him to take a time penalty and not do the challenge.

“It was my idea because I was truly concerned about Mark’s well-being and it was just so hard for me to sit and watch him onstage struggle. He had gotten so hot and I knew at that time there was nothing else in him to give,” says Bopper.

“That’s when I went and told him I loved him and let’s just take the penalty.”

But Mark soldiered on and after 12 tries and more than three and a half hours, he finally completed the challenge. When they finally arrived at the Pit Stop hours after the other teams, they were relieved to hear it was a non-elimination leg and they were still in the “Race.”

After checking in, Mark was immediately attended to by medical staff and put on an I.V.

He did not feel much better the next morning but the two decided to continue with the “Race” anyway.

“Mark was still slurring (his words). He was still not 100 per cent but he was willing to do what we had to do,” says Bopper.

“We knew we were three hours behind and we had our work cut out for us so the most we could do was have fun, enjoy it and when we saw that Fast Forward, we said, ‘Man, we’ve got a shot at staying in this Race.’”

Even though they willingly shaved their heads at the Fast Forward in order to bypass all the other challenges, they still finished the leg behind all the other teams and this time, were eliminated.

It was disappointing news for the two friends, who were hoping to win the $1 million prize to help out their families.

Bopper explains that he lives right beside a coal processing plant and his eight-year-old daughter has suffered from respiratory problems since she’s been six months old.

“My main goal in winning the money was to relocate my family to a cleaner, healthier environment so every time I thought I was down and out and I couldn’t go any further, I would just picture my child on a breathing machine and I would just dig deep and keep going.”

Mark also needed the money to take care of his family and says the situation went from bad to worse when he returned home from the “Race” to find out he had been let go from his job.

“I’ve always said you’ve got to play the cards of the hand you’re dealt in life and I guess things happen for a reason,” he says.

“You never know what the good Lord holds for you tomorrow . . . I know something good will come out of something bad,” adds Bopper, even though he admits jobs like the one Mark had in the department of agriculture are hard to come by.

“You’ve got very few options. You’ve either got the coal mines to work in or you (can) flip burgers at a fast food restaurant, and that’s it. There are no jobs where we live.”

But the two friends say they are open to whatever opportunities come their way and are just grateful for the chance to run the “Race” together and see the world.

“It just changed our whole perspective on life. We ain’t got nothing and we saw people that really ain’t got nothing,” says Mark. “We’ve got a roof over our head and lights and water. Some people didn’t even have that so we appreciated (what we do have).”

Mark: "We was the only ones that was loyal all the way through."Bopper: "True."Mark: "A lot of people weren't loyal to us."Bopper: "Jamie and Nary was loyal to us the whole time."Mark: "The whole time. The rest of them were looking out for themselves the whole time and we didn't care about that. That's how people is. That's the difference between people from where we're from and people from the big cities. We care about people - people from the big cities care about themselves."Bopper: "Listen - our word and honor is all that we got."

I just get a bit annoyed with all this 'we are the good guys stuff'. It's a game and they know it is and they are playing it as well. All this righteousness may have worked for them with how the show was done but it detracts from them a bit for me. And the funny thing is they say they wanted Dave and Rachel to win even though Brendon and Rachel were actually people who helped them at some points in the race and were on their side. So where is the loyalty there?

Thanks for the interviews slayton.

« Last Edit: May 01, 2012, 11:52:05 PM by starrynight »

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In an "Amazing Race" season that has sometimes struggled to find teams worth rooting for, self-described Kentucky boys Mark Jackson and William "Bopper" Minton never had any trouble endearing themselves to viewers.

Mark & Bopper were so immediately relatable and sympathetic and their enthusiasm for the experience of "The Amazing Race" was so contagious that at one point during the season, Art & JJ offered a chunk of a first place reward to Bopper, to assist his daughter. "The Amazing Race" isn't a show in which teams routinely give away their prizes, so that's not a gesture to take lightly.

That was the first time Mark & Bopper finished last, but it turned out to be a Non-Elimination Leg and they recovered in the next Leg to continue their journey.

A few episodes later, difficulties mastering choreography for a Bollywood dance number, coupled by health issues for both Mark & Bopper, led to their second time in last. Fortunately for them, it was a second Non-Elimination Leg.

It was like "The Amazing Race" couldn't stand to see them go.

Of course, when Mark & Bopper finished last for the third time on this past Sunday's episode, there was nothing to be done and Team Kentucky was sent back to Clay County, hoping they'd done right by their community.

In our exit interview, Mark & Bopper talked about how they've been received back home, how they maintained their spirits on the Race and about that offer from Art & JJ. [As viewers of the show know, they're pretty passionate guys, especially Mark, and there were a bunch of questions I didn't get to ask... ]

Click through for the full interview...

HitFix: One thing you mentioned a couple times was your desire to do right by Clay County, Kentucky. How have people back home responded to you?

William "Bopper" Minton: They love us. They're absolutely proud of their Clay County boys.

Mark Jackson: Yes. We feel like we might've let 'em down a little bit because we can't make a difference, but I think we're gonna make a difference now by just telling everybody that they can do anything they set their mind to in life, because we did. We were troubled children when we were growing up and we changed our lives around and it's made all them believe the same thing and that's more than winning the money and donating money to the kids in the county, to just realize that they care that much about us.

Bopper: We've had a big honor in going to a lot of the elementary schools here in Clay County and just telling the kids to do their best at whatever they do and as long as they do their best, they have something to be proud of and hold your head up high. They have welcomed us with open arms.

HitFix: In a perfect world, if you'd won, what were you hoping to do with the money and for the area?

Bopper: For one, my first priority was to relocate my family to a healthier environment. Where I live is a very dust-polluted area and my child is very sick with asthma and she's on seven different respiratory medicines. As a father, that would have to be my first priority, was to get my child into a safer location. And then whatever else I could do for a needy family or a needy child, I would give 'em the shirt off my back.

Mark: I would have loved to have been able to get the money and relocate and give my kids more of what they deserve and turn around a bunch of families around here, kids who don't have shoes to wear to school and stuff, and just put the money toward that. Money is good, but if you can do good with the money, that's what what makes the money that much better. That was our main goal: We need something to change the outlook of kids in this town, because our town is just overwhelmed with drugs. We have an overdose probably every two weeks or something. In a little small town like this, it's just ridiculous. What we've gotta do is get people to recognize that the kids are the future. If I had that money, I could get it out there. I could do good for kids. I could make kids realize that there's something else in life besides drugs, they don't have their parents and... There was a whole lotta stuff I coulda done with the money to make a big difference in my county. Don't get me wrong, I hope and pray that people hear us talking about this and wants to step up and maybe come in and say, "Listen Mark, what can we do to help you in the county?" These people like Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey just donate money everywhere. How'd you like to donate enough money to this county that we might be able to change 20,000 people's lives and change a whole county around and even surrounding counties. That was our main goal, is to get relocation and our family a better life and change the lives of some people in our county.

Bopper: Even though we didn't win the Race, we still changed our county, heart-wise, because our whole county has went out to us and they're overwhelmed at how well we done on the Race and respected and respresented our county. Of course we didn't win the Race, but we still made a small difference in our community.

HitFix: At some point, Bopper said that doing "The Amazing Race" was more Mark's dream than his. Mark, what made you want to go on "The Amazing Race"?

Mark: I watched the show my whole life. The thing about it is I love to see places like that. And then I just started thinking: I have a brother who's hooked on drugs and all that stuff and that would be such a nice thing to win the million dollars to let him see [muffled], get away from that stuff, don't do it and let everybody see that no matter life throws at you, you can change your life around and be good. You can ask Bopper, if you do good, good is going to happen to you. That's the reason I think we got on the Race, because I watched the Race, couldn't get nobody to do it with me. But I just called Bopper up and I said, "Bopper, listen. I need this show, man and I want you to do this show with me." He's like, "What are you talking about?" And I said, "You can win a million dollars." He said, "Well where's the application at?" He didn't ask when it was and didn't care what it was. He realized this was a chance to change his daughter's life and get rid of all the atmosphere that he was in and he went for it.

HitFix: No real hesitation for you, Bopper?

Bopper: Absolutely not, brother. Listen, for a chance to relocate my child into a healthier environment son, I would walk through any fire that you can build. There was absolutely no hesitation whatsoever.

Mark: He didn't know what it was. He didn't care what it was. It was just a chance that he could change his life for his daughter and it was a no-brainer. He was all over it.

HitFix: What was it like watching and reliving the episode from last week with the Bollywood number?

Bopper: For me, my whole house was in tears, including myself. I was there and seen it happen live, but to sit back at home with my family and watch it again, it was heart-touching. I seen that Mark was in trouble, you know? I knew that he was in trouble, so that's why I asked him, "Let's take the penalty." I said, "Because I'd rather you walk back to Kentucky with me, Mark, instead of me packing you back in a body bag, man." I said, "I've got nothing left to give them on this stage." I said, "You're going to take a heat stroke. So let's just take the penalty and see what goes from there." So we decided to do that and we got over in the shade and Mark set down for a few minutes and we got to talking again, just getting him calmed down and cooled down and you know and then we kinda looked at it again and I said, "How 'bout one more shot, brother? You think you're up for doing it one more shot?" And he said, "No. I'm not up to it. But I'm gonna do it." It was just heart-touching for us.

Mark: Yeah I was sitting and watching it with my family. Like I said, I'm raising three kids by myself and I was trying to be strong, trying to be tough and not let 'em see weakness and I when I looked over and seen my family are bawling their eyes out, I just didn't know what to do, but I didn't wanna let 'em see me cry, so I just told 'em, I said, "I need to go outside and smoke a cigarette." I went outside and I cleaned myself up. I let it all out and then I dried it up before I come back in. I didn't really know how bad it was until I did see it on TV. I knew it was bad, because I was falling and stuff, but I didn't know how bad it really was. Even last night's show, I was watching it and I could still see where I was drained and I was nowhere near 100 percent. But like me and Bopper said, "Man, this is our only chance in this world that we're going to have a chance to change our lives for our kids and our county and man... we've got to do it, no matter if it puts us wherever it puts us," we've got to do it.

HitFix: You guys seemed to get along so well out there. Is that just your natural dynamic? Did you worry you were going to fight on the Race?

Mark: We argued a little bit on the Race. Listen, we don't want our kids to see us acting crazy on national TV, doing something stupid, arguing. We don't want them to argue with people. Friends are gonna have differences. We had difference of opinions and sooner or later we realized that one of us was right and one of us was wrong and it didn't matter if it was me or Bopper. Whichever one was wrong was man enough to say, "You're right." I'd say, "You're right, Bopper. That's the way we need to do it." And Bopper would do it. He'd said, "Mark. You're right. That's the way we need to do it." We had differences, but friendships is friendships, man. Everybody's gonna have differences, but you cannot let it come between your friendship. There ain't nothing in the world that bad. We were racing for a million dollars, but what people don't realize is that we wanted to enjoy ourselves we were doing it, because we would never get an opportunity to do this again. We're traveling around the world. Let's absorb it in and see. Because couldn't keep up with us on the task. We couldn't find our way around, but they couldn't keep up with us on the task. When it comes to a task, we killed 'em. That's the sad part of what happened in Bollywood. If I hadn't have gotten sick and my partner's leg wasn't hurt. If my partner's leg wasn't hurt, he'd have done that dance, but he couldn't do that dance and I was so sick, to tell you the truth, I shouldn't have been doing the dance. But it left me to do it, so I wasn't gonna let my partner down. I went out there and gave it everything that I had and that's what I tell my kids, "No matter what happens to you in life, you give everything you've got." We give everything that we've got 110 percent every day that we had. If you do that, you can live with the outcome of what happens, win, lose or draw.

Bopper: We knew where each other stood before we left here, you know. We've been friends our whole life. I told Mark, when me and him was running and jogging and trying to get in shape for this Race, I told him, I said, "Look. We're life-long friends. We're gonna leave here as friends. And we're coming back as friends, regardless. Win, lose or draw, we're all each other's got." You're friendship and your family are all that matters in life. We had our little differences of opinion, like Mark said, but when push come to shove, we met in the middle and we had to do what we had to do. Was our friendship in jeopardy? Never was an issue.

Mark: I know Bopper was giving it everything he had and Bopper knows I was giving it everything I had. So if one of us didn't succeed, we knew were giving it all we got, so that was just gonna be it.

HitFix: And what's the story, you guys, on the money that Art and JJ promised you?

Mark: That was to Bopper and he promised it for his daughter and that was a great gesture and everything like that. We told him we took him to heart and we appreciated it. Bopper, his daughter, that would give her... that was a great gesture and the reason they did that was because they know what kind of people we are. They know what we stood for and they know what we were there for.

Bopper: That's true. We had no idea that they wuz gonna do that. I don't know as far as what CBS allows you to say or state, but nobody gets anything until it's all over with, but I spoke with Art & JJ since then I told them that I wasn't gonna hold them to that promise, but they said, "No. We never welch on anything that we say." So they said, "Just as soon as we get our money, we're sending your child a third of that money." I really do appreciate that.

How exactly does Joey & Danny are bad characters? Did they attacked other teams? No. They were just minding their own business the whole time.No account clubbers? Really? I think the way they portrayed themselves was just averagely normal. You are saying they are unaccomplished jerks because? Your minds are all so clouded by stereotypes. /gags

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Oh Brian, I can't wait til after dinner. Cos then we'll go home and you can watch me have my period.

Usually when all these exit interviews get posted, I read the first one or two and them skip the rest, since all the interviewers ask pretty much the same questions. This time, I read all of the interviews that slayton posted. I didn't get to watch the episode until yesterday, so I'm not quite used to Bopper & Mark being eliminated, but dang, I'm gonna miss them on the race. They are great guys. A shoo-in for the next returning racers season.

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"I defy you to come up with a better name than Seven!""Alright... how 'bout Mug? Mug Costanza!"

In an "Amazing Race" season that has sometimes struggled to find teams worth rooting for, self-described Kentucky boys Mark Jackson and William "Bopper" Minton never had any trouble endearing themselves to viewers.

Money is good, but if you can do good with the money, that's what what makes the money that much better.

Bopper: Even though we didn't win the Race, we still changed our county, heart-wise,

trying to be tough and not let 'em see weakness and I when I looked over and seen my family are bawling their eyes out, I just didn't know what to do, but I didn't wanna let 'em see me cry,

Mark: We argued a little bit on the Race. Listen, we don't want our kids to see us acting crazy on national TV, doing something stupid, arguing. We don't want them to argue with people.

We were racing for a million dollars, but what people don't realize is that we wanted to enjoy ourselves we were doing it, because we would never get an opportunity to do this again. We're traveling around the world. Let's absorb it in and see. Because couldn't keep up with us on the task. We couldn't find our way around, but they couldn't keep up with us on the task. When it comes to a task, we killed 'em. That's the sad part of what happened in Bollywood. If I hadn't have gotten sick and my partner's leg wasn't hurt.

First people are saying they were great racers, I don't completely agree with that. They weren't terrible but there were deep seated health problems which I am not willing to make excuses for. Even in Germany running up the stairs at the castle you could see both of them were completely out of breath. To say that they could kill all tasks I don't think is strictly true and this race has not really been that physical either. Climbing, swimming, paddling for instance have not been featured.

Also whatever someone does with the prize money is their business, and outside factors like that are not part of my own judgement of racers. It's more about how people are on the race and not external factors for me.

And they admitted they did argue it just wasn't shown I guess. And there's nothing wrong with sometimes standing up for what you think against other people anyway, certainly better than keeping quiet when something wrong is being done. They had to be prodded hard by Art and JJ to speak against them, and they never did against Vanessa till after the show.

Trying to look tough and not seen crying, sound a bit like Art and JJ there.

And I don't agree with the journalist that this race has been hard to find people to root for, I think there have been several others who may not have had as good an edit but have been very rootable for. I'm still saying they are among my top 5 this season, but I don't think they are as perfect as some would have us think.

Also to think you can change a country just by being on the race I really don't think is very realistic. It's making too big a claim. Most people will be happy to see them as individuals profit from being on it, but that's it. And don't think I am unsympathetic to Bopper's daughter, I have asthma myself and have suffered over the last decade and still do. People tend to be ignorant and arrogant to you over it, even doctors. They just give you an inhaler and tell you to go away however bad your condition is. Nothing on an entertainment show will change anything in any country.

A bit more Jamie love in these interviews would have been nice too since Bopper is an admirer, but the journalists don't bring it up.

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Reality Fan Forum, where 'enthusiasm' is completely redefined as not meaning having an interest in and having something to say but as having to be completely positive even about aspects of something you disagree on. So both the fan and forum (discussion) aspects are prescribed/limited.

In an "Amazing Race" season that has sometimes struggled to find teams worth rooting for, self-described Kentucky boys Mark Jackson and William "Bopper" Minton never had any trouble endearing themselves to viewers.

Money is good, but if you can do good with the money, that's what what makes the money that much better.

Bopper: Even though we didn't win the Race, we still changed our county, heart-wise,

trying to be tough and not let 'em see weakness and I when I looked over and seen my family are bawling their eyes out, I just didn't know what to do, but I didn't wanna let 'em see me cry,

Mark: We argued a little bit on the Race. Listen, we don't want our kids to see us acting crazy on national TV, doing something stupid, arguing. We don't want them to argue with people.

We were racing for a million dollars, but what people don't realize is that we wanted to enjoy ourselves we were doing it, because we would never get an opportunity to do this again. We're traveling around the world. Let's absorb it in and see. Because couldn't keep up with us on the task. We couldn't find our way around, but they couldn't keep up with us on the task. When it comes to a task, we killed 'em. That's the sad part of what happened in Bollywood. If I hadn't have gotten sick and my partner's leg wasn't hurt.

First people are saying they were great racers, I don't completely agree with that. They weren't terrible but there were deep seated health problems which I am not willing to make excuses for. Even in Germany running up the stairs at the castle you could see both of them were completely out of breath. To say that they could kill all tasks I don't think is strictly true and this race has not really been that physical either. Climbing, swimming, paddling for instance have not been featured.

Also whatever someone does with the prize money is their business, and outside factors like that are not part of my own judgement of racers. It's more about how people are on the race and not external factors for me.

And they admitted they did argue it just wasn't shown I guess. And there's nothing wrong with sometimes standing up for what you think against other people anyway, certainly better than keeping quiet when something wrong is being done. They had to be prodded hard by Art and JJ to speak against them, and they never did against Vanessa till after the show.

Trying to look tough and not seen crying, sound a bit like Art and JJ there.

And I don't agree with the journalist that this race has been hard to find people to root for, I think there have been several others who may not have had as good an edit but have been very rootable for. I'm still saying they are among my top 5 this season, but I don't think they are as perfect as some would have us think.

Also to think you can change a country just by being on the race I really don't think is very realistic. It's making too big a claim. Most people will be happy to see them as individuals profit from being on it, but that's it. And don't think I am unsympathetic to Bopper's daughter, I have asthma myself and have suffered over the last decade and still do. People tend to be ignorant and arrogant to you over it, even doctors. They just give you an inhaler and tell you to go away however bad your condition is. Nothing on an entertainment show will change anything in any country.

A bit more Jamie love in these interviews would have been nice too since Bopper is an admirer, but the journalists don't bring it up.

Let me guess, you got banned from Sucks after you complained the guys made fun of Nary & Jamie?

I'm sure they fought and argue, heck, bet even Mother Teresa couldn't get along with her nuns 24/7, but heck, the editors needed a good team what with Brenchel, Dave/Rachel and Art/JJ creating controversy and Vanessa behaving like a 3-year-old (was going to say 4-year-old but that would flatter her.

It's easy to find people to root for, problem is, all of them were eliminated earlier, and Misa/Maiya were basically roadkill.

No, I don't mind Sucks at all and never complained about Nary and Jamie being made fun of anywhere. Looks like your guess wasn't too good.

I think there have been others worth rooting for, such as in the later stages Brendon and Rachel, Dave and Rachel, Nary and Jamie. In the earler stages you could probably add the clowns, not sure about Misa/Maiya as hardly saw anything of them. It's often difficult to judge the first team that gets eliminated.

Logged

Reality Fan Forum, where 'enthusiasm' is completely redefined as not meaning having an interest in and having something to say but as having to be completely positive even about aspects of something you disagree on. So both the fan and forum (discussion) aspects are prescribed/limited.